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Jeri Kemple, owner of EcoMaids, an environmentally friendly cleaning service, made a promise to herself years ago, and finally that promise has come true.

“I made a deal with myself many years ago that I didn’t want to do anything to make money if I wasn’t helping my planet or encouraging eco-friendly awareness,” she said.

Before launching EcoMaids, Kemple was a real estate agent who focused on sustainable development and communities, and said she started the environmentally conscious cleaning company as a plan B.

“The (real estate) market was kind of doing some funny things and I was thinking, I need a plan B, and so Plan B has now turned into Plan A,” she said. “I had my last closing Dec. 30, so I was going from cleaning houses to putting on something decent to go show houses.”

Kemple said she learned her natural cleaning practices from her grandmother. Kemple would spend summers and school breaks with her grandmother in the garden and in the home.

“My grandmother was raised Mennonite, so she taught me how to clean a sink with baking soda and how to wash the windows with vinegar, and would say, ‘Put some lavender in there; it makes it smell better,'” Kemple said. “So I learned a lot of my housekeeping and ways of life from her, and I just thought it would be really nice to simplify cleaning for people. It’s just a tried-and-true method – the way people have been cleaning – especially coming from my great-grandmother’s time, that’s just what they did, and so it’s passed down methods from my family. It’s just a way to keep your house sanitized, clean and tidy without any toxic chemicals and without neurotoxins.”

EcoMaids cleans both commercial and residential spaces, and Kemple said its prices are competitive with other cleaning services. Currently, Kemple and her business partner, Lora Fraracci, who also is her best friend, are the only two people on staff, but she said there are plans to add two more employees by the end of the month.

“Because it was a cleaning service, we were able to start with nothing, which is the ultimate American dream, where you have an idea for a business and you go out and you do it, so that’s what we did,” Kemple said.